Colorado sports and nature photography plus random musings

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Death of a camera

Still mourning the loss of my Canon 40D. First time in my life I have actually worn a camera out. So I was thinking back at the times I had with that camera and it occurs to me that we covered a a lot of ground together. For starters I imagine there were probably close to 1000 treks through the wildlife preserve and the lake to photograph the deer herd where I used to live. There were the balloon festivals, marathons to be covered, hikes in the mountains of Boulder, the sheer cliffs of El Dorado State Park, Rocky Mountain National Park and the Mount Evans Wilderness. The camera was with me as picked my way onto rocks near the banks of Clear Creek photographing whitewater rafting and kayaking. We were wary when we photographed the female bear with her cubs and were surprised by a nudge from behind from a curious bighorn sheep and we made ourselves comfortable with a family of coyotes while they feasted on a deer carcass.

The camera was with me in good weather and bad, sunshine, rainstorms and blizzards. One other time I thought the camera had seen it’s last shot during a blizzard in 2009. My gloves got wet and I think a little moisture must have seeped into the shutter button. Anyway the camera quit shooting, but I opened all the little doors on it and later on it dried out and started shooting again.

Through the lens of my 40D I experienced the aging and passing of my samoyed and my border collie along with their feline buddy Bubba. The camera was along when we said goodbye to our home in Parker that we thought we would retire in.

We stared in wonder at the constantly changing north face of Pikes Peak and explored the forests and parks of the Pike National Forest when we first moved to Teller County in 2010. Since then there have been fires and floods, drought and storm, and some incredible mountain snowfall to capture.

Finally, at the most inopportune time, my trusted device failed me. I was trying to get some shots of a small herd of young doe mule deer who were strolling past. Much to my surprise the deer just walked right up to within a few feet of me. Close enough that they passed between me and my friendly little tabby cat Tigger who didn’t seem to be the least bit concerned. I was worried that the deer would become startled by the little guy and was holding my breath hoping not to scare them into any sudden violent behavior. Before long I was gazing in wonder and amazement as Tigger and the smallest deer of the group were touching noses and making friends. Unfortunately the only record of the incident will be in my mind. The final image captured by my 40D was the portrait of Tigger that I had taken moments before.

All in all it was a very rewarding six year run with that camera. I hope then next six years are equally filled with wonder and adventure. By the grace of God they will be.